Card-index filing cabinet



May 11 1926. 1,584,478

-LSCHWARZ CARD INDEX FILING CABINET Filed Sept. 50, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 WITNESS INVENTOR J4 00a ic/lr/xmz ,5 w yc mmw j y A TTORNE V8 May 11 1926. 1,584,478

' J. SCHWARZ CARD INDEX FILING CABINET Filed Sept. 30, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 MTNESS I 11v mi T01? ATTORNEYS Patented May 11, 192%.

JACOB senwnnz, or new YORK, nsY.

CARD-INDEX FILING CABINET.

Application fi1ed Septemher This invention relates to card index filing systems and cabinets therefor, and particularly to the type thereof disclosed in the United States Patent- 1, -l-.07,9ei8, granted Feb- 6 ruary 28, 1922, to Benjamin G. Rand. This type of card index systems is characterized by the provision of a plurality of cards arranged in overlapping relationship, in shah low, horizontal drawers or shelves, in such a manner that a marginal portion of each card at one edge will be exposed, the exposed marginal portion of each card containing the desired index information and the main body of the card being used for such other information Dr data as desired. Generally speaking, the cards are pivotally secured in the respective drawers so that any given card may be swung to a position in which information or data contained thereon may be read and amplified or changed or so as to expose a given card to enable it to he read or new data added thereto, such shifting being carried out without requiring the card to be removed from its drawer. Such filing cabinets are usually mounted on a suitable support and it is customary either to use a lower drawer of the cabinet, in a wholly or partly withdrawn position, to support the outer edge :of a wit idrawn drawer for holding; it .in aninclined position, or to provide a table or shelf at the front of the cabinet for this purpose. If a lower drawer is used to sup port a withdrawn drawer the support at foltded is not as strong and rigid as might be desired while in c nstructions in wl ch table is employed, the uppermost drawers are in clined .at such an angle that it is ditiicult to write upon the cards contained therein. In

additon,.in either of the above cases, when the cards are swung upwardly against the frontface of the ciliinet as is required in the use thereof, saiu cards exhibit a tendency to fall forwardly upon the face of the exposed card. Consequently, it is frequently necessaryfor the user to hold the upwardly swung card with one hand to prevent their falling forward as above set forth. Again when the cabinet is mounted so that its front extends vertically it is difficult in many cases to read the indicia on the front panels of the lowermost drawers, this difficulty being particularly marked when a front shelf or table is employed.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a new and improved construction particularly adapted for use with a filing ca l ly extending;

so, 1925. Serial No. 59,484.

cabinet of an overlapping card type, in which the objections above noted are over come; the invention contemplates further the provision of a new and imoroved sectional cabinet construction. l

The above and other obiects of my invention will appear more fully from the followmg more detailed description and the features of novelty will be pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an eaampie of the invention, withoutdehnmgz; its limits, 1 is a front elevation of the novel sectional cabinet, Fig. 2 1s a plan view thereof, 3 is a rear elevation; Fig. i is a side elevation of the stiucture shown in Fig. "l; and Fig. 5 is a perspective of a support ng frame unit.

shown in tl e drawings, the sectional cabinet of l igs. 1 to inclusive, comprises a plurality of supporting units one of which is shown in Fig. 5 and is designated generally hy the refercnce character A. The support ing units, which may he of any suitable construction, are snown as consistine' of a pair of side castings or frames each ha ving vertifront and back legs 10 and if respectively, the upper extremities of which are connected by a downwardly and rearwardly inclined supporting bar ormemher 12. The side frames are connected and held together in properly spaced relationsnip hy i'neans of the connecting bars 13 and l t and a horizontal supporting plate 15 pro ecting upw rdtv beyond the inclined bars inthe form of a flange which is substantially perpendicular to plane of said nclined supporting; bars The side iraiucs are provideo at the front thereof with forwardly p1 ejecting table brackets 16: p ferahly (on prising integral parts of said f anies, and constituting supports for a table Eli, said tanlc "Qlltill'lg between the side to secure the side frames in connected spacer, relationshii The less 10 and E1 and the supporting bars 12 are preferably of angle iron configuration so that when. the supporting units it are as semhled, the outer side faces thereof present plane surfaces which enable two or more of such units to be bolted or otherwise detachably secured together to form an assembled structure consisting of any desired number of units as shown in Figs. 1 to 4, To facilitate this interconnection of said units A, each of the side frames is provided with a plurality of holes 18 similarly located in each frame so that such holes will align with the correspondingly located holes of any other side frame, thus enabling two or more frames to be readily bolted together. It will be understood that the frame units and the cabinets carried thereby are of the same width so that the side walls of each cabinet will be in the same vertical plane as the outer wall of each frame unit.

The filing cabinets per se are vindicated generally by the reference character B, and each of said cabinets consists of a rectangular outer casing 20 containing a plurality of drawers or slides 21 to which the cards 22 are pivotally and detachably connected by any suitable means which form no part of the present invention.

The cabinets are placed upon the supporting bars 12 of the frame units with their lower rear ends supported by the flange 15 of the supporting plate 15, as shown most clearly in Fig. i the fronts of the cabinets being inclined rearwardly and upwardly, and preferably at an angle of approximately 45 to the vertical although a smaller angle, for example 30 would suflice.

Side brackets 23 and 2a may be provided for supporting the side shelves or table sections 25, said brackets having the vertical legs thereof provided with holes arranged to align with certain of the holes 18, for the accommodation of bolts or other suitable devices for connecting said side brackets and their table sections with the terminal units A of the assembled structure as shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

\Vhen only one frame unit and cabinet is used, the side shelves and brackets are bolted preferably to each side of the single frame unit. In both cases the side brackets serve as means to hold the cabinets against movement transversely of the supporting frame. It will also be understood that, while the provision of the side-tables 25 is preferable because of the extra table space secured by their use, any means n be substituted therefore to act as side stops for preventing transverse movement of the cabinet units.

It will be noted that when the cabinets are supported and arranged as herein disclosed, the entire fronts of the cabinets are located at an inclination directly in the field of vision of the user, thereby enabling the user to read the data contained on the front panel of any cabinet drawer without necessitating any stooping or change from an upright position on the part of such user. In addition when a drawer is withdrawn and supported on the front table in the manner shown in Fig. 4:, it is firmly maintained in a most advantageous position for examining a given card and for writing thereon; in addition any desired number of the uppermost cards may be thrown upwardly against the front of the cabinet to positions well beyond the vertical plane of their pivotal supports so that the possibility of such cards falling forwardly upon the exposed card is practically obviated. Consequently the user will not be required to manually maintain such top cards in their upper position, as a result of which both hands are free and said user is enabled to work with great-er speed and efficiency.

It will be understood that various changes in the constructional details herein disclosed may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of my invention, 45 angle of inclination of shown is merely il.ustrative, likewise the construction of the frame units as shown may be departed from. In addition the invention is not limited to the construction of sectional cabinets although the sectional construction is preferable.

I claim:

1. Ina card index filing cabinet, a supporting unit provided with a table and an inclined support extending rearwardly and downwardly from said table; and a cabinet unit having a plurality of drawers adapted to contain index cards slidably mounted therein, supported on said inclined support with the front of said cabinet extending rearwardly and upwardly from said table.

2. The combination with a card index cabinetunit of the type having a plurality the cabinets for example, the

of drawers slidably mounted within thecabinet, and pivotally movable relatively thereto,- in their withdrawn positions, said drawers being adapted to have a plurality of cards pivotally mounted therein arranged in superimposed overlapping relationship, of a supporting unit provided with a forwardly extending tabie and an inclined support for said cabinet extending rearwardly and downwardly from the top of said table and additional supporting means to hold said cabinet on said inclined support with the front of said cabinet extending rearwardly and upwardly from the top of said table, said table cooperating with said pivotal connection of a drawer to'support said drawer when withdrawn from said cabinet.

3. The combination with a card index cabinet unit of the type having a plurality of drawers slidably mounted within said cabinet, said drawers being adapted to have a plurality of cards pivotally mounted therein arranged in superimposed overlapping relationship, of a support for said drawers when withdrawn from the cabinet, and of a supporting unit provided with an inclined support extending rearwardly and downwardly from the front edge of said unit, said support bein adapted to hold said cabinet with its front face inclined rearwardly and upwardly.

i. The combination with a plurality of filing cabinet units of the type having a plurality of drawers s-iidably mounted Within said cabinet units, said drawers being adapted to have a plurality of cards mounted therein arranged in horizontal, superimposed, overlapping relationship, of a support for said cabinets consisting}; of a plu rality of supporting units detachably connected With each other, each of said support ing units being of the same Width as a cabinet unit and being provided with supports to hold a cabinet unit with the front face thereof inclined rearwardiy to the vertical 7 means secured to the outer faces of the ial supporting units to p 'event movenicit of aid cabinet units transversely of said support.

The combination with lilii {cabinet refit:

a plurality of units of the type having a pluof drawers shdably mounted within said cabinet units, said drawers being adapted to have a plurality of cards mounted therein arranged in horizontal, superimposed, overlapping relationship, of a supporting frame for said cabinets consisting of a plurality of supporting units detac-hably connected With each other, each of said supporting units being of the same Width as a cabinet unit and being provided with supports to hold a cabinet unit with the front face thereof inclined rearWardly to the Vertical and means secured to the outer faces of the for: inal supporting units to prevent movement of said cabinet units transversely of said support, said means comprising a bracket and a side table secured thereto.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

JACOB SCHWARZ. 

